Access to Birth Control for Teens: A Right or a Parental Decision?

How would you feel if you were a mom who just found birth control pills hidden in your 15-year-old’s drawer? Will you respect your child’s decision, or will you feel the need to contact the authorities in charge?

As we move towards more liberal times, the conversation on adolescents’ sexual education, rights, and freedom has posed a dilemma in many homes, with the need to decide between protecting teens' health and honoring their families’ values. 

In this article, you will find out everything you need to know, from facts, laws, and expert insights to real-life situations.

According to global reports from the W.H.O., nearly 1 in 10 girls aged 15–19 in low and middle-income countries become pregnant each year, with almost half of the pregnancies unplanned and ending in abortions.^[1] 

This issue is particularly concerning because adolescent mothers are at higher risk for several complications and diseases like sexual transmitted infections, eclampsia, uterine wall infection, and systemic infections. 

To reduce this public health concern and keep the teenagers safe, strategies are aimed at the prevention of adolescent pregnancy and childbearing by encouraging safer sex practices, the use of contraceptives, and abstinence. 

With the use of contraceptives as the best preventive option.

Despite these efforts, adolescents in both high, middle, and low-income countries still face barriers to access to birth control due to:^[2]

• Policies and laws are restraints in some countries based on age and marital status

• Teens not wanting to use birth control due to fear and stigma 

• Lack of available services 

• Poor  knowledge of sex education and best practices 

• Family values 

Comprehensive sex education (CSE) goes beyond “don’t do it.” 

It includes information on the understanding of desire, pleasure, health, safety regarding STIs, birth control, and consent. 

Yet, UNESCO reports that only about  37% of adolescents have well-rounded knowledge of HIV prevention, and many still lack access to reproductive health services, especially in developing countries. ^[3] 

In many societies, sex is an unspoken topic for teenagers, considered taboo or not culturally right. 

In India, the Drugs Control Department of Karnataka issued a ban of condoms to minors. If a 17-year-old boy wants to get some condoms at a pharmacy he will be denied because it is not allowed for the pharmacists to sell them to someone under 18. ^[4]

Here's what some teens had to say:

This system of moral policing becomes a barrier, hinders safer sex practices, and causes more harm than good.

Teens who fear their parents may find out about their treatment are more likely to forego sexual and reproductive health care.

In one survey, 12.7% of 15–25-year-olds claimed they wouldn't obtain sexual and reproductive health care because their parents would find out.^[5]

While most states in the U.S allow for confidentiality for minors with varying degrees of right, other countries do not, and some laws often require parental consent. ^[5]

The legal age of consent and medical confidentiality laws vary widely, creating confusion.

Should schools provide access based on legal rights or involve parents, even if not mandated?

Laws on paper don’t always match reality. Cultural stigma and legal loopholes can cause restrictions and barriers to contraceptive access. 

In Kenya, a 15-year-old girl purchased emergency contraceptives (EC) from a pharmacy after she was defiled. When her parents found out, they  reported the pharmacists for “corrupting minors.” The pharmacist was arrested. ^[6]

After investigations, it was found that the girl repeatedly sought help from the pharmacist; she was also later confirmed pregnant. 

It can be argued that if teens had more free access to birth control and ECs, the unwanted pregnancy in this case may have been avoided. 

The pharmacists also suffered undue punishments despite there being no legal age restrictions on EC in the region. ^[6]

This brings the question of what strategies are in place to help protect girls who fall victim to rape and abuse?

Why Some Support Parental Involvement

Both parents and some physicians support the role of parental consent, and here is why: ^[7]

• Parents will be able to provide emotional, financial, and medical support as per their legal rights and duties  

• Protecting their children from vulnerability and exploitation, especially among younger minors

• Promotion of open and honest communication 

On the other hand, more individuals protest and advocate for the provision of birth control to teens with full autonomy and confidentiality. 

A study in the PLOS ONE journal found that teens who are involved in making decisions about their sexual and reproductive health are more likely to use birth control regularly and successfully.^[8]

Teen birth control autonomy has been found to:^[9]

• Empower teens to protect themselves from unintended pregnancies and STIs
  

• Respects evolving decision-making capacity

The Guardian interviewed different women regarding the use of contraceptives. Quotes from Anushka’s story highlight the challenges teens encounter when required to discuss sex with their parents, underscoring the need for parents to engage in more open and honest conversations with their adolescents.^[10]  

To bridge the gap, teens, parents, society, and government need to focus on:

• Fostering open parent-teen communication
  

• Offering health services that combine confidentiality with counseling
  

• Reforming  policy to expand youth-friendly clinics and telehealth
  

• Educating both parents and teens
  

• Promoting respectful dialogue in schools about comprehensive sexual education
  
  

The W.H.O. Global health standards stress that protecting teens' health doesn't mean keeping parents out; it means making sure they can make safe, well-informed decisions.

The decision on whether teens should have access to birth control with or without parental consent sparked the debate and complexity of the situation. 

The real question isn’t whether teens are having sex, but whether we’re giving them the tools to stay safe, healthy, and informed. 

So, who do you think should decide?

1. “Adolescent Pregnancy.” Accessed August 7, 2025. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/adolescent-pregnancy.

2. Chandra-Mouli, Venkatraman, and Elsie Akwara. “Improving Access to and Use of Contraception by Adolescents: What Progress Has Been Made, What Lessons Have Been Learnt, and What Are the Implications for Action?” Best Practice & Research. Clinical Obstetrics & Gynaecology 66 (July 2020): 107–18. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bpobgyn.2020.04.003.

3.  Comprehensive Sexuality Education: For Healthy, Informed and Empowered.” Accessed August 8, 2025. https://www.unesco.org/en/health-education/cse.

4. Jan 18, BySridhar VivanSridhar Vivan / Updated:, 2023, and 06:00 Ist. “‘Can’t Sell Condoms, Contraceptives to Minors.’” Bangalore Mirror. Accessed August 13, 2025. https://bangaloremirror.indiatimes.com/bangalore/others/cant-sell-condoms-contraceptives-to-minors/articleshow/97068188.cms. 

5. Reilly, Kristen, and Ashley Ebersole. “Confidentiality and Privacy Considerations for Adolescents Receiving Contraceptive Health Services via Telemedicine: A Narrative Review.” Women’s Health 20 (February 2024): 17455057241233126. https://doi.org/10.1177/17455057241233126.

6. "Pharmacist Faces Charges for Allegedly Giving Abortion Pills to Teen Girl," Nation Africa, published June 7,2023.  https://nation.africa/kenya/news/pharmacist-faces-charges-for-allegedly-giving-abortion-pills-to-teen-girl-4260810. 

7. Santos, Xiomara M. “Protecting the Confidentiality of Sexually Active Adolescents.” AMA Journal of Ethics 14, no. 2 (2012): 99–104. https://doi.org/10.1001/virtualmentor.2012.14.2.ccas2-1202. 

8. Ahinkorah, Bright Opoku, John Elvis Hagan Jr, Abdul-Aziz Seidu, et al. “Female Adolescents’ Reproductive Health Decision-Making Capacity and Contraceptive Use in Sub-Saharan Africa: What Does the Future Hold?” PLOS ONE 15, no. 7 (2020): e0235601. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0235601. 

9. Whitfield, Brooke, Elsa Vizcarra, Asha Dane’el, et al. “Minors’ Experiences Accessing Confidential Contraception in Texas.” The Journal of Adolescent Health : Official Publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine 72, no. 4 (2023): 591–98. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2022.11.230. 

10. Davis, Nicola, Bridget Minamore, Isy Suttie, et al. “Adventures in Contraception: Eight Women Discuss Their Choices.” Society. The Guardian, August 10, 2014. https://www.theguardian.com/society/2014/aug/10/adventures-in-contraception-womens-choices. 

TLT/MSM